There is something that gets whispered in the hallways and even openly discussed around campus. No I am not talking about the “food” in the dining hall of the University Revenue Building — I am talking about independence.
There are some ‘round these parts that think that it would be in the best interest of campus to sever ties with Fowler Avenue and the University of South Florida. I am diametrically opposed for USFSP going the way of USF Polytechnic by becoming an independent university within the State University System of Florida.
What would be the benefit? With Florida Polytechnic there are now 12 universities within the SUSF, all of which compete for resources (funding) from the legislature or research funding.
Why would we want to become the 13th and the youngest?
We would have no alumni, friends, in the legislature.
Because we do not like Tampa?
Granted there are sometimes there is an extra step to get things approved from Tampa, but I happen to like the main campus and being a branch of USF.
I spent five years on the main campus getting two bachelor’s degrees before coming to this side of the bay to pursue my master’s degree. All of the perks of being a USF student are open to us USFSPers as well. We get free tickets to football, basketball and baseball games. There is more parking and we can park in some spots at the main campus, as well.
If you find yourself over at the main campus you can walk into the new Marshall Center and get your free 40 pages of black-and-white printing. The library is open 24 hours a day during most weeks of the semester.
The massive amount of students on that campus means there are countless food options; unlike here where the Tavern at Bayboro (which is great) and the University Revenue Building (not so much) are the only places on campus to satisfy your grumbling stomach.
If we were to leave the USF System, all of the volumes in the Nelson Poynter Memorial Library would have to have to be returned to the main campus. So would the desks and chairs and computers — all of which have the “Property of USF” sticker on them.
The debt service on the University Revenue Building would have to be negotiated with Fowler Avenue; and if we students thought that we were paying a lot of cash for that wait until we are paying for new books, furniture and computers on top of the nicest dormitory in the Southeast.
It would also be awkward having the Marine Science College, which is a part of USF and not USFSP, being next door.
What about the bronze bull we just paid $10,000 for?
Unlike most folks on this campus I do not see a difference between USF, USFSP, and USF Sarasota-Manatee. During my tenure at USF I have taken a class on all four of the campuses that make up the USF System. We are all part of the same university.
At one point USF stretched from the heart of Polk County with USF Lakeland, later USF Polytechnic, down the Gulf Coast to Fort Myers where the USF Fort Myers campus was located. That campus left the system and became Florida Gulf Coast University. You may have heard a lot about them lately.
Now the USF System is down to three campuses around Tampa Bay and spanning four counties. We should maintain this regional presence and maybe expand north to Pasco and Hernando Counties in the future, not continue to sever campuses off.
Go Bulls!
Frank Kurtz can be reached at fkurtz@mail.usf.edu.
